JAMMU: In the run up to the upcoming assembly elections in five states across the country, the political spectrum has entered into an alarming competitive mode to announce freebies for voters to woo them and to win the polls. Less than promising moon, the ‘professional’ politicians are ready to offer anything and everything, of course at the expense of the Indian taxpayer, as also at the cost of compromising the democracy. Had the freebies been just for the votes only, it could somehow be tolerated as a lesser evil but the disastrous dimensions this concept has attained is sadly reflected by what happened on the highway leading to Ferozepur this afternoon when the so-called protesting farmers put in jeopardy the security of the Prime Minister. Such a dangerous modus operandi is manifestation of the freebies the Punjab government has announced to win the elections. The Congress led government has already disbursed Rs 5 lakh compensation each of 400 families of those killed during the farmers’ protests apart from jobs to 152 to next of kin. The Punjab government has also announced release of funds amounting to Rs 1,200 crore to clear loans up to Rs 2 lakh under the existing debt waiver scheme of about 1.09 lakh small and marginal farmers. Such concessions have emboldened a particular section of society to such an extent that they can resort to tactics having serious ramifications on the security of the nation.
Ironically, the freebie culture got a big boost by the self-styled anti-corruption crusader Arvind Kejriwal, who won Delhi after announcing free power and other concessions. At the strength of the freebies and not because of its performance, Aam Admi Party is emerging as a force to reckon with even outside the Union capital.
The question arises as to how long and how far shall politicians go in pursuit of their ambitions under the garb of democracy. The Election Commission remains a mute spectator to open and brazen acts of corruption, not only by vote seeking political parties but also by those who are in the cradle of governance. Nobody is asking as to whose money is it they are using to pamper their supporters? The judiciary, being the last hope, too is not stepping in to free the nation from the ‘enemies of democracy’ and the ‘custodians of the public exchequer’, who are misusing the government funds for their benefit at their whims and fancies. Is it democracy? Freebies are neither a recent nor special phenomenon in India and were a usual offering from political parties in the run-up to elections. Every party whether in the government or in the opposition, have and are all resorting to this. The failure of the parties and governments to deliver development to the ordinary people has primarily led to the concept of freebies and the parties have to resort to it to win over the voters, knowing well that freebies affect the way people vote. Sometimes, it works and sometimes it doesn’t, depending whether other conditions are fine. With freebies, some people hope that life will be better.
Let it be clear that there is a huge difference between promises of development and welfare schemes and the freebies, especially in this era of technological development. With social media having become a forceful and effective tool of communication, people are raising very pertinent points on the subject, which are directly related to governance. The posts in the media state what the common masses think. They refer to the slogans, “Give us votes, we will give you laptops, cycles, scotties, free electricity, waive loans, so on and so forth”.
Should a taxpayer cut the throat of his children to facilitate politicians to spend the money on freebies to get votes? Isn’t it open-ended corruption? Doesn’t this culture impact the election process? Can the Election Commission ensure free and fair polls in the face of open announcements of freebies by the political parties? Is it too much to expect from the Commission to issue clear guidelines in this regard? What if taxpayers refuse to pay taxes as a resentment for these funds being used by corrupt politicians for their political gains? The shoddy practises adopted by the Indian political class are bothering the middle class the most. They are paying their hard earned money for undertaking developmental schemes like power generation, credible water supply, dependable roads, better healthcare facilities, quality education and availability of basics to all etc. They certainly don’t pay to create parasites, who get everything without doing anything. It is time for the proponents of democracy to think and act.